{{Short description|Nigerian screenwriter, film producer, and director}} {{EngvarB|date=November 2016}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2016}}
{{Infobox person | name = Emem Isong Misodi | image = Emem_Isong_Misodi.jpg | caption = Emem Isong in 2020 | birth_place = Ikono, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria | education = {{ubl|University of Calabar (BA)|University of the Creative Arts (PhD)}} | occupation = {{hlist|Producer|screenwriter|director}} | years_active = 1994 - present | spouse = Misodi Akama | children = 3 | website = https://www.youtube.com/@EmemIsongTV }} '''Emem Isong''' {{Audio|Ig-Emem Isong.ogg|listen|help=no}} is a Nigerian screenwriter, film producer, and film director. She is primarily known for films in the English language, and is a prominent figure in the Nollywood industry. Her second feature as a director, ''Code of Silence'', which deals with rape in Nigeria, was released in 2015.
==Early life and education== Isong, the first of four children, was born on 5 September and is from Ikono Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State in Nigeria.<ref name="Birth">{{cite web|title=iROKOtv Nollywood Icon Birthday: Emem Isong|url=http://blog.irokotv.com/irokotv-nollywood-icon-birthday-eme/|website=IrokoTV Blog|accessdate=17 October 2016|archive-date=10 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180810064730/http://blog.irokotv.com/irokotv-nollywood-icon-birthday-eme/|url-status=dead}}</ref> She obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in theater arts from the University of Calabar and a diploma in computer science from the Computer Science Institute (NCR).<ref name="EDUCATION">{{cite web|title=Emem Isong|url=http://www.sodasandpopcorn.com/people/emem_isong|website=Sodas 'N' Popcorn|accessdate=16 November 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161117211340/http://www.sodasandpopcorn.com/people/emem_isong|archive-date=17 November 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 2024, she earned a doctorate degree in film and media arts from the University of the Creative Arts, United Kingdom.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2022-12-13 |title=Nollywood's Emem Misodi picks UCA for PhD |url=https://www.uca.ac.uk/blogs/leading-nollywood-filmmaker-picks-uca-for-phd/ |access-date=2025-10-15 |website=University for the Creative Arts - UCA |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Egwuatu |first=Somtochukwu |date=2024-08-10 |title=Emem Isong-Misode earns doctorate degree in film, media arts |url=https://guardian.ng/saturday-magazine/weekend-beats/emem-isong-misodi-earns-doctorate-degree-in-film-media-arts/ |location=Lagos, Nigeria|access-date=2025-10-15 |newspaper=The Guardian|language=en-US}}</ref>
==Career== Isong's career in filmmaking began in 1994 when she wrote the script and co-produced the film ''Jezebel''. Her first solo production was ''Breaking Point'' (1996). She later worked with Remmy Jez for eight years as a producer. The professional relationship ended in 2008, after which she co-produced the film ''Reloaded''.<ref name="Prolific">{{cite web|author1=Olehi|authorlink1=Uche|title=How Emem Isong emerged Nollywood’s most prolific filmmaker|url=http://encomium.ng/how-emem-isong-emerged-nollywoods-most-prolific-filmmaker/|website=Encomium|accessdate=17 October 2016}}</ref>
She has written or produced films such as ''Reloaded'', ''Breaking Point'', ''She Devil'', A ''Minute To Midnight'', ''Play Boy'', ''Private Sin'', ''Master Stroke'', ''Rumours'', ''Shattered Illusion'', ''Promise Me Forever'' and ''Emotional Crack'' (screenplay).<ref name="Epprecht2008">{{cite book|last=Epprecht|first=Marc|title=Heterosexual Africa?: The History of an Idea from the Age of Exploration to the Age of AIDS|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TSpCBSP-lt8C&pg=PT215|date=15 August 2008|publisher=Ohio University Press|isbn=978-0-8214-4298-2|page=215}}</ref> The latter was screened at the African Film Festival in New York City.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nigeriamoviesreview.com/celebrities/emem-isong-biography-profile/|title=Emem Isong Biography/ Profile|publisher=Nigeria Movies Review|accessdate=22 September 2016|archive-date=3 June 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170603010750/http://www.nigeriamoviesreview.com/celebrities/emem-isong-biography-profile/|url-status=dead}}</ref> She is also known for Yoruba language pictures and is a prominent figure in that industry.<ref name="Miller2016">{{cite book|last=Miller|first=Jade L.|title=Nollywood Central|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_2cmDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA82|date=28 April 2016|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=978-1-84457-694-4|page=82}}{{Dead link|date=March 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
Isong's films featured early performances by Nollywood actors, including Stephanie Okereke and Dakore Egbuson.<ref name="GAY">{{cite journal|author1=Lindsey Green-Simms|author2=Unoma Azuah|title=The Video Closet: Nollywood's gay-themed movies|journal=Transition|date=2012|issue=107|pages=32–49|jstor=10.2979/transition.107.32|publisher=Indiana University Press}}</ref>
In 2014, Isong directed her first feature film ''Champagne'', which had its premiere at the Silverbird Galleria in Victoria Island, Lagos.<ref name="BN">{{cite web|url=https://www.bellanaija.com/2014/12/cute-couple-emem-isong-hubby-misodi-akama-for-champagne-movie-premiere/|title=Cute Couple! Emem Isong & Hubby Misodi Akama for ‘Champagne’ Movie Premiere|publisher=Bella Naija|accessdate=22 September 2016}}</ref> In August 2015, she released the film ''Code of Silence'', her second directed feature film which she also produced, in collaboration with the Royal Arts Academy and Nollywood Workshop.<ref name="#SHEVOICES">{{cite web|title=Emem Isong|url=http://tv.awlo.org/shevoices/portfolio/ememisong/|website=African Women Leadership Organization|accessdate=17 October 2016|archive-date=4 November 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161104142137/http://tv.awlo.org/shevoices/portfolio/ememisong/|url-status=dead}}</ref> The film, which deals with rape in Nigeria, stars Makida Moka, Patience Ozokwor, Ini Edo, and Omoni Oboli.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/08/emem-isong-makes-case-for-rape-victims-in-code-of-silence/|location=Lagos, Nigeria|title=Emem Isong makes case for rape victims in ‘Code of Silence’|date=15 August 2016|accessdate=22 September 2016|newspaper=Vanguard}}</ref>
Isong has served as a speaker at the Afrinolly masterclass series and also as a judge for the MTN Afrinolly short film competition in 2013.{{dead link|date=October 2025}}<ref name="AFRINOLLY">{{cite web|title=Afrinolly MasterClass Series With Charles Aniagolu and Emem Isong|url=http://bits.ng/?p=11224|website=Bits|accessdate=16 October 2016|archive-date=4 November 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161104142415/http://bits.ng/?p=11224|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="THRILL">{{cite web|title=Emem Isong Biography/ Profile|url=http://www.nigeriamoviesreview.com/celebrities/emem-isong-biography-profile/|website=Nigeria Movies Review|access-date=22 September 2016|archive-date=3 June 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170603010750/http://www.nigeriamoviesreview.com/celebrities/emem-isong-biography-profile/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
==Legacy== Isong has been described as a maverick in the New Nollywood movement which is categorized by filmmakers who are not just interested in producing films, but in creating substantial and artful works. She has collaborated with different writers such as Rita Onwurah, Karyn Udeh, Toiyoabasi Ekong, Jane Nwachukwu, and Vivian Chiji and her films have featured actors including Adesua Etomi, Nancy Isime and Daniel Etim Effiong. These films are usually categorised by an extra effort made by the filmmakers to ensure not only the methods but also the tools of production employed by the filmmakers are of substantial quality. It is no longer about production for the sake of production but for art's sake. These films are also made to have domestic and international appeal as they are usually released in Nigerian and foreign cinemas. This shift from home video production to cinema viewing is also a category of this New Nollywood movement.<ref name="NEW NOLLYWOOD 2">{{cite journal|last1=Haynes|first1=Jonathan|title=Close-Up:Nollywood—A Worldly Creative Practice: "New Nollywood":Kunle Afolayan|journal=Black Camera|date=1 January 2014|volume=5|issue=2|pages=53–73|doi=10.2979/blackcamera.5.2.53|jstor=10.2979/blackcamera.5.2.53|publisher=Indiana University Press}}</ref><ref name="POSTCOLONIAL EXOTIC">{{cite journal|author1=Alessandro Jedlowski|title=Nigerian Videos in the Global Arena: The Postcolonial Exotic Revisited|journal=The Global South|date=1 March 2014|volume=7|issue=1|pages=157–178|url=https://muse.jhu.edu/article/538435|issn=1932-8656}}</ref>
Isong is also known for her role in founding the Royal Arts Academy in 2010 and her subsequent role as the academy's CEO. The Royal Arts Academy which she started with Uduak Oguamanam, Anietie Isong, and actress Monalisa Chinda, is based in Surulere, Lagos State, Nigeria.{{dead link|date=October 2025}}<ref name="ROYAL ARTS ACADEMY">{{cite web|title=Emem Isong opens acting academy|url=https://www.nigeriafilms.com/movie-news/85-film-tv-workshop/7129-emem-isong-opens-acting-academy|website=Nigeria Films|accessdate=17 October 2016|archive-date=9 December 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221209070904/https://www.nigeriafilms.com/movie-news/85-film-tv-workshop/7129-emem-isong-opens-acting-academy|url-status=dead}}</ref> Its mandate is to empower students by giving them the necessary tools required to take part in all aspects of film creation and production preparing them to compete in both the Nigerian and international film industries.<ref name="R A ACADEMY">{{cite web|title=About Us|url=http://royalartsacademy.com.ng/about-raa/|website=Royal Arts Academy|accessdate=17 October 2016|archive-date=14 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161014061503/http://royalartsacademy.com.ng/about-raa/|url-status=dead}}</ref>{{dead link|date=October 2025}}<ref name="R A Academy 2">{{cite web|title=Emem Isong's Royal Arts Academy To Improve Film-Making in Nigeria|url=http://www.nigeriamovienetwork.com/articles/read-emem-isongs-royal-arts-academy-to-improve-film-making-in-nigeria_80.html|website=Nigeria Movie Network|accessdate=17 October 2016}}</ref> Students are also given opportunities to win funding to produce films for public release.<ref name="EMPOWER">{{cite web|author1=Tosan|title=Royal Arts Academy spotlights Film Contest and Awards|url=http://trendyafrica.com/royal-arts-academy-spotlights-film-contest-and-awards/|website=Trendy Africa|accessdate=17 October 2016|date=27 October 2015}}</ref>
==Personal life== Isong is known to be private and rarely grants interviews. This, according to her, is because she wishes her work to be consumed on its merits alone without her personal life influencing her viewers.<ref name="PRIVATE LIFE">{{cite news|author1=Ekerete Udoh|author2=Benjamin Njoku|title=Emem Isong opens up on her private life…Why I’m not married|url=http://www.vanguardngr.com/2011/07/emem-isong-opens-up-on-her-private-life-why-i%E2%80%99m-not-married/|location=Lagos, Nigeria|date= 16 July 2011|accessdate=17 October 2016|newspaper=Vanguard}}</ref> Isong is married to Misodi Akama,<ref name="BN"/> with whom she has twins born in 2016.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bellanaija.com/2016/07/nollywood-producer-emem-isong-her-twins-in-new-adorable-photos/|title=Nollywood Producer Emem Isong & her Twins in New Adorable Photos|publisher=Bella Naija|date=20 July 2016|accessdate=22 September 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author1=Gbenga Bada|title=Movie producer pour encomium on son as he turns 8|url=http://pulse.ng/celebrities/emem-isong-movie-producer-pour-encomium-on-son-as-he-turns-8-id3834021.html|website=Pulse|accessdate=4 November 2016|date=5 June 2015|archive-date=4 November 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161104141351/http://pulse.ng/celebrities/emem-isong-movie-producer-pour-encomium-on-son-as-he-turns-8-id3834021.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
== Filmography == Isong's film credits include:<ref name="IMDb">{{cite web|title=Emem Isong|url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2130579/|website=IMDb|accessdate= 17 October 2016}}</ref>
===Producer=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Year !Film title |- |2024 |''Deafening Silence'' |- |2023 |''Yes to Forever'' |- |2022 |''Dance with Me'' |- |2021 |''A Bitter Pill'' |- | 2020 |''Special Jollof'' |- |2019 |''Your Dream Girl'' |- |2018 |''Mr. & Mrs. Right'' |- |2017 |''Body Language'' |- | 2016 | ''Ayamma'' |- | 2015 | ''Don't Cry For Me'' |- | rowspan="2" | 2014 | ''Apaye'' |- | ''Knocking on Heaven's Door'' |- | 2013 | ''Forgetting June'' |- | 2012 | ''Silver Lining'' |- | 2011 | ''I'll Take My Chances'' |- | rowspan="4" | 2010 | ''Kiss and Tell'' |- | ''Bursting Out'' |- | ''Holding Hope'' |- | ''Memories of War'' |- | 2009 | ''Edikan'' |- | 2008 | ''Reloaded'' |- | rowspan="3" | 2007 | ''A Time To Love'' |- | ''Unfinished Business'' |- | ''Yahoo Millionaire'' |- | rowspan="2" | 2006 | ''Games Men Play'' |- | ''Traumatised'' |- | rowspan="7" | 2005 | ''Behind Closed Doors'' |- | ''Darkest Night'' |- | ''Endless Lies'' |- | ''Games Women Play'' |- | ''Girls in the Hood'' |- | ''I Feel U'' |- | ''Men Do Cry'' |- | rowspan="4" | 2004 | ''Critical Decision'' |- | ''For Real'' |- | ''Masterstroke'' |- | ''Promise Me Forever'' |- | 2003 | ''Private Sin'' |- | 1996 | ''Breaking Point'' |- | 1994 | ''Jezebel'' |}
===Writer=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Year ! Film title |- | 2011 | ''I'll Take My Chances'' |- | rowspan="3" | 2008 | ''Bursting Out'' |- | ''Heartbeats'' |- | ''Reloaded'' |- | rowspan="3" | 2007 | ''A Time to Love'' |- | ''Unfinished Business'' |- | ''Yahoo Millionaire'' |- | 2006 | ''Games Men Play'' |- | rowspan="4" | 2005 | ''Blind Obsession'' |- | ''Darkest Night'' |- | ''Fragile Pain'' |- | ''I Feel U'' |- | rowspan="2" | 2004 | ''Enslaved'' |- | ''Promise Me Forever'' |- | 2003 | ''Emotional Crack'' |- | 1994 | ''Jezebel'' |}
===Director=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Year ! Film title |- | 2014 | ''Champagne'' |- | 2015 | ''Code of Silence'' |}
== Awards and nominations == Awards received by Isong include:<ref name="AM AWARDS">{{cite web|title=Star of the Week: Emem Isong|url=http://africamagic.dstv.com/2013/08/06/star-of-the-week-emem-isong/|website=Africa Magic|accessdate=17 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131124083051/http://africamagic.dstv.com/2013/08/06/star-of-the-week-emem-isong/|archive-date=24 November 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref>{{irrelevant citation|date=October 2025|reason=Concerns the winners of the HomeVida 2013 Short Script Competition and does not mention Enem Isong or the 2014 award for ''Knocking on the Heavens Door''.}}<ref name="HOMEVIDA">{{cite web|title=Winners|url=http://www.homevida.org/winners|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019010354/http://www.homevida.org/winners|url-status=usurped|archive-date=19 October 2013|website=Nigeria’s Integrity Film Awards|accessdate=17 October 2016}}</ref> * ZAFAA Awards, in the category of Best Producer for the film ''Memories of my Heart'' (2010). * Wow Divas, Outstanding Contribution to Raising Awareness, Understanding and Hope to those Affected by Autism Spectrum Disorder and Advocating for them through her film ''Silver Lining'' (2012). * ELOY Awards, Best Movie Producer of the Year for ''I'll Take My Chances'' (2011). * Best of Nollywood, Special Recognition Award. * Ntanla Awards, Industry Merit Awards. * Nigeria's Integrity Film Awards (HomeVida) in the category Family/Child Friendly Category for the film ''Knocking on the Heavens Door'' (2014).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ugonna |first=Chinenye |date=7 December 2014 |title=Dazzling Mirage, Knocking on Heavens Door shine at Nigeria awards |url=https://www.premiumtimesng.com/entertainment/172616-dazzling-mirage-knocking-heavens-door-shine-nigeria-awards.html?tztc=1 |access-date=2025-10-15 |newspaper=Premium Times}}</ref> * Africa Movie Awards in the category of Best Scriptwriter for the film ''Reloaded'' (2008). {{Citation needed|reason=This claim needs a reliable source; this award is not stated in other sources in this section|date=October 2025}} * ''City People'' Awards in the categories of Best Producer of the Year, and Best Screenplay for the film ''Reloaded'' (2008). {{Citation needed|reason=This claim needs a reliable source; this award is not stated in other sources in this section|date=October 2025}}
==See also== * List of Nigerian film producers
==References== {{reflist}}
== External links == {{IMDb name|2130579|Emem Isong}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Isong, Emem}} Category:Nigerian screenwriters Category:Nigerian film producers Category:Nigerian women film producers Category:Living people Category:University of Calabar alumni Category:Nigerian women film directors Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:Nigerian film directors Category:Actresses from Akwa Ibom State Category:21st-century Nigerian businesspeople Category:21st-century Nigerian businesswomen Category:20th-century Nigerian businesspeople Category:Nigerian women screenwriters Category:Alumni of the University for the Creative Arts